sammichSID Prototype

[last man on earth]

EDIT:

Nevermind, sent you an email, Wilba.

Also, if anyone else is interested, I'm in for green cases on these kits.

Edited January 15, 2010 by last man on earth

[gbraad]

I received it at the beginning of this week (Tuesday)... in time for a good weekend project. Just now I finished the soldering and construction. Haven't been able to test it yet. I did make some photos:

http://ping.fm/4IcIA

http://ping.fm/CbdKk

http://ping.fm/H9Qc4

I am quite amazed about the professional feel after almost completing it. Only thing left to do is painting it! Oh yeah, keep me up-to-date about any expansion (as suggested earlier and in the guide).

greets,

Gerard

[kristal=]

Does anybody dream about his or her sammichSID? Well, I do. Even though I do not have the kit yet, I dreamt of trying to assemble the LEDs into the front plate. But that didn't worked out well, because the holes for the LEDs were, in this case, wider than 3mm and it was kind of frustrating. No LED fitted right. And the result didn't looked like the sammichs on the photos posted here. I tried to fix it with hot glue but that didn't worked out either. Interesting dream, don't you think? Also my front plate was blue acrylic, even though I'm in for a matte black one.

Does this happen to you guys?

[vc slime 800]

I haven't had the time to do a video like I said I would :cry: but here's a recording anyway of my first sammichSID experiment with analogue delay and accompanying noises of the Kawai K5000W Additive synth:

slimeSIDvision.mp3

Also, here's some pictures in the context of my messy studio:

I didn't do a great job of the lettering, the paint dryed in a lumpy manner but I think it was probably due to me applying it too thickly/quickly. That's OK, it still looks good (to me)... :unsure:

[Wilba]

Congratulations vc slime 800! I look forward to hearing more experiments :thumbsup:

[Geir_Helgi]

Oooh!

Just picked mine up from the post-office today!

I'm gonna start building tonight :)

I was amazed at how well this thing was packed and ... Yeah, just the over-all operation!

It's genius!

:thumbsup:

Edited January 19, 2010 by Geir_Helgi

[vc slime 800]

sammichSID into Plague Bearer w/ analogue delay and spring reverb + vinyl crackle... AND GHOSTS...

Plague Sammich Ghoul\'s Gold.mp3

[Olorin]

I just discovered that I am placed in a batch 5. Which seems to be not too far away. So I did a bit of reading on the forum and discovered a few people with problems finding parts. I was under the illusion that the kit was complete expect for power supply. Have I missed something vital?

[TK.]

So I did a bit of reading on the forum and discovered a few people with problems finding parts.

for which MIDIbox projects? post the links please.

Best Regards, Thorsten.

[286]

I just discovered that I am placed in a batch 5. Which seems to be not too far away. So I did a bit of reading on the forum and discovered a few people with problems finding parts. I was under the illusion that the kit was complete expect for power supply. Have I missed something vital?

What you need besides the kit is a power supply and some non-conductive non-fancy thermal paste for the heatsinks. Something that believe it or not, some people seem to have problems finding.

[Wilba]

I would think finding a good power supply/plugpack (i.e. 12V DC non-switchmode) is harder to find than silicone heatsink compound, since they've been phased out in many countries and you can only buy new switchmode ones.

If anyone has any good ideas about making MIDIbox SID work with a switchmode plugpack (i.e. eliminating the AC hum) then please share!

[m00dawg]

I think I'm using a switched 12VDC adapter (will have to check, but I'm almost sure it is as it is small and I'm pretty sure it says "switched" on the label :) with no hum. It's a bit noisy but it's white noise type stuff and not any actual hum. I intend on getting it replaced at some point but for now it works.

My suggestions is to DIY one :) For some reason, PSU's make me hot. *shrug* A fully fused non-switched PSU would be pretty cake to make. Basically just a transformer and some fuses. Rectification is happening on the Sammich anyway so is there need to add anything more than that? The hard part (and this is the same problem I have with my MB-6582 external PSU) is finding a case for it that looks halfway decent.

Otherwise, the parts are cheap, reasonably easy to assemble and could be made cheaper perhaps with a bulk order.

[Wilba]

Based on how many people make mistakes when putting together something relatively simple and thoroughly documented like a sammichSID kit, do you think it is wise for me to encourage people to wire up a transformer to a mains plug?

If people want to win a Darwin award, they can do it without any help or suggestion from me... :tongue:

[m00dawg]

Based on how many people make mistakes when putting together something relatively simple and thoroughly documented like a sammichSID kit, do you think it is wise for me to encourage people to wire up a transformer to a mains plug?

If people want to win a Darwin award, they can do it without any help or suggestion from me... :tongue:

Sure :) I mean we're just talking about a transformer and some fuses. I've done plenty of silly and bad things but have never electrocuted myself when dealing with mains. Pretty clear cut and simple rules to follow there. Hmm, actually I already have a spare transformer I could use for this...I just need a plug....*ponders*

Anyways I see your point, but it's not like anyone HAS to build it. There are workable options ready-made and available that, while less than ideal, should get the job done.

[Olorin]

What you need besides the kit is a power supply and some non-conductive non-fancy thermal paste for the heatsinks. Something that believe it or not, some people seem to have problems finding.

Yes, that is what I noticed. So perhaps I should start looking for that paste and a transformer now if they are hard to find I bet Sweden is one place where they are almost impossible to find.

[rabato]

I bet Sweden is one place where they are almost impossible to find.

That would be Spain, sorry :)

[286]

Yes, that is what I noticed. So perhaps I should start looking for that paste and a transformer now if they are hard to find I bet Sweden is one place where they are almost impossible to find.

If you live in Sweden it shouldn't be a big problem.

Places like clas ohlson, elfa and kjell&company have what you need.

I got this power suply from kjell&co, i haven't tested it with the sammich yet (not finalized my build yet) but it should do the trick: http://www.kjell.com/content/templates/shop_main_details.aspx?item=44253 (Stabilized 12VDC @ 1000mA)

I got the non-conductive thermal paste from webhallen but you could get it from pretty much anywhere.

[Olorin]

If you live in Sweden it shouldn't be a big problem.

Places like clas ohlson, elfa and kjell&company have what you need.

I got this power suply from kjell&co, i haven't tested it with the sammich yet (not finalized my build yet) but it should do the trick: http://www.kjell.com/content/templates/shop_main_details.aspx?item=44253 (Stabilized 12VDC @ 1000mA)

I got the non-conductive thermal paste from webhallen but you could get it from pretty much anywhere.

Great! Can you add the name or link to the thermal paste 286? I can order it today. I have some other stuff to order from webhallen anyway.

[286]

Great! Can you add the name or link to the thermal paste 286? I can order it today. I have some other stuff to order from webhallen anyway.

sorry, i was out of town this weekend

here is the link: http://www.webhallen.com/prod.php?id=87211&traff=1 thats pretty much as cheap as it gets :)

But its pretty thick and has a high viscosity and its non-conductive so it should do the trick. And I can't really imagine any paste not working if applied correctly. :rolleyes:

[lylehaze]

I would think finding a good power supply/plugpack (i.e. 12V DC non-switchmode) is harder to find than silicone heatsink compound, since they've been phased out in many countries and you can only buy new switchmode ones.

If anyone has any good ideas about making MIDIbox SID work with a switchmode plugpack (i.e. eliminating the AC hum) then please share!

It might be useful to use a switchmode supply to feed linear regulators..

Having a variety of caps in between them should reduce the switching noise, especially smaller ceramic types for the high frequency noise.

The linear regulators in the final stage would reduce it even further.

Most important here would be to make sure you reach the minimum _input_ voltage for each linear regulator, plus a volt or two for headroom.

Well, it's worth a try anyway. Though I think the Darwin effect might be reduced.

LyleHaze

[Erik]

First time poster, I've been lurking the forums and midibox.org for over a year now and held off on buying any kits though I do have two 6581s. I'm glad the Sammich is finally available, its exactly what I've been looking for. A few questions:

1)Are you currently taking pre-orders?

2)What options are available for this round? LCD colors? LED colors?

[Paavi2_0]

Wilba, I e-mailed you just in case you take pre-orders for new batches. I'm not sure about my message ever arriving in your mailbox though.

What I would like to know, what's your estimate on how long it will take for the last (or latest, supposing that one is the last one on the waiting list) batch to be shipped?

[Wilba]

These questions should be answered on the wiki page, but they aren't.

http://www.midibox.org/dokuwiki/sammichsid

If only I had a slave to do all these mundane tasks like updating the wiki...

1)Are you currently taking pre-orders?

Yes.

2)What options are available for this round? LCD colors? LED colors?

From batch #5 onwards, all sammichSID kits will come with either:

• yellow-green high-power backlight LCD and green LEDs.
  
• white-on-blue low-power backlight LCD and no LEDs. (I have 25 or so, but not many people want them, so they'll last a while yet)
  
• no LCD and no LEDs.
  

Current kit price includes LCD and LEDs. If you choose an option without LCD or LEDs, I deduct the price difference.

I'm currently packing batch #4 (nearly done).

There'll be a delay while I order more PCBs and do a stocktake on what parts I have and need to reorder.

I may need to ramp up my production of kits, maybe do 50 kits at a time, so I can aim to get the next 100 kits (batches #5-#8) shipped before May.

[kristal=]

Your sammichSID kit was posted TODAY.

So nice! I'm firing up the soldering iron :-D Thx Wilba!

[Olorin]

Whoohoo I am on the next batch. For estetical reasons I want to go with the white/blue LCD which sadly does not come with LEDs. What are the specifications for the LEDs if I am have to buy them separately?